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A note from the Kumamoto International Earthquake Cluster Desk (merged with the Typhoon Cluster Desk due to budget cuts):
No, that wasn't just you! Yes, there have been a number of earthquakes recently, most centered around the Uto Peninsula. For example, there was a 3.6 at 5:00 this morning, which I didn't notice as my dog was kicking me in the face, and a 2.6 around 8:00, which I did feel as its epicenter was directly under my house. (Lower photo caption: directly under my house.)
We'll keep you updated. - William

This is what I refer to as “ALT gold”. A simple letter elegantly written. Jay Onyskin

Shimin Byoin (市民病院) was so heavily damaged during the quakes that they decided to relocate the whole thing to Higashi-Ku. Now under construction, ironically, it was found that the oil dampers - huge devices installed at the base of a building designed to absorb seismic shocks - were among those manufactured by KYB, whose products have been under scrutiny for quality falsification. So investigation into swapping them out is underway, Kumanichi reports.
Coincidentally, a quality assurance manager at a major Japanese electronics company which has also suffered from falsification scandals visited yesterday, and we discussed this very topic: false (adj); falsify (vt); falsification (n). Loss of trust: irretrievable. This continuous stream of scandals threatens the Japanese brand. - William
建設中の熊本市民病院に不正免震装置　ＫＹＢデータ改ざん | 熊本日日新聞 - This kiji is
２０１９年秋の開院を目指し、熊本市東区東町で移転新築工事が進む市民病院＝今年４月５日（高見伸）　油圧機器メーカーのＫＹＢとその子会社が免震・制振装置の性能検査記録データを改ざんしていた問題で、熊本市は...

Here's an article about Yuka Ogata's most recent difficulties in the city council. It quite old now but I think it's fairly detailed and worth a read if you're unfamiliar with the issue.
If you understand Japanese, I'd like to repeat my invitation to listen to the following interview with Ms. Ogata:
http://www.fmc.or.jp/sound/qic20181014c.mp3
For more about this very interesting (in my view) local internet radio station, see my original post at
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/2174661142607306?__tn__=-R
The lozengate issues has quieted down a bit, but I'm fairly confident that we haven't heard the last of it. Since I've last written about the issue here, I've learned more about what Ms. Ogata was trying to do as a politician when her colleagues shut her down over the use of a cough drop. She was advocating for the establishment of a 議会基本条例 (gikai kihon jorei; a basic law governing council deliberations). Most local governments in Japan now have such a law so Kumamoto is behind the curve. The law would function as a "constitution" for the city council and require more openness (explanations about reasons for decisions instead of just pass-failure pronouncements, etc.). Openness is good for citizens but not so good for politicians who don't like being in a fish bowl. So, the argument can be made that part of what the flap was REALLY about was shutting down a call for openness that most of the members of the city council were not happy about. I learned about this listening to the radio interview I reintroduced above and also from a couple of personal conversations with Ms. Ogata. Interestingly, even the local Japanese newspaper (the Kumanichi) hasn't written much about the call for the new law requiring more openness. I'm planning to ask someone I know at the newspaper why they don't go deeper and explain what is really at stake.
That's all for now. I'll try to write again when something new comes up.
-- Kirk
https://soranews24.com/2018/10/02/japanese-city-councilwoman-who-took-baby-to-work-kicked-out-of-conference-for-using-cough-drop/
Japanese city councilwoman who took baby to work kicked out of conference for using cough drop
Other members call for immediate suspension of meeting due to breech of etiquette, take eight hours to decide on her increasingly stupid punishments.

I work at a private JHS/HS once a week. This is a school where I don’t use Katakana and I speak mostly English. This week, The students chose the lesson which was music. I brought in my Iphone and hooked it up to a nice audio speaker. I told the students to pick their favorite songs and discuss. The students really got into this as in singing their favorite song while it was playing to being a tad embarrassed about their favorite jam. This lesson was so groovy that students themselves brought the teachers into the lesson. And the teachers actively participated with no complaints. The age divide became noticeably evident when one teacher played some Bossa Nova but the last one was hilarious because he picked Metallica’s master of puppets. Towards the end of lesson I picked one of my favorite jams for us to sing. The song is a mid tempo indie jam by Jets to Brazil called Cat Heaven. I broke the students into 3 and each set of 3 sang a verse and the chorus of the song. The teachers not wanting to be out done sang the song also.Everybody did great and a few times I was on the verge of tears. Jay Onyskin

Joe Tomei here. Been asked to post this on the list, as always, please contact the address given below,
=====
Magic English School in Shinmachi is looking for a native speaker to teach adult and kids lessons on Saturdays ( 9am- 6:30pm, November or December start).
Experience teaching EIKEN and TOEIC an advantage, but not essential.
There is also the possibility of weekday lessons becoming available.
Please contact Barry on 096-221-3479 or email
[email protected] for more details.
http://www.magicenglish07.com/#2

Kumanichi reports that scaffolding is being removed from the castle's main keep as exterior restoration is complete, 2.5 years after the quakes. The reconstructed keep includes earthquake-proofing features such as X-bars. Preliminary visits are expected to commence from October of next year, and, uh, complete completion in 2021.
A funny story my wife told me: as we walked by, she heard a worker call out in Kumamoto dialect 「はまったばい！」, which means "It fits!" Work on the stone walls continues apace, with 107 of 790 stones of the main keep's walls returned to their original positions. Now is the time to view them, each carefully numbered, before they are returned. - William
熊本城天守、真新しく　石垣積みなおし復旧着々 | 熊本日日新聞 - This kiji is
真新しい屋根や壁が見えるようになった熊本城の大天守。４階以上の工事用足場が取り外されている＝１６日、熊本市中央区（高見伸）大天守１階に設置された「クロスダンパー」積みなおしが終わった大天守北面の石垣　...

Chikae-san at Out of Step bakery and cafe (take the densha to Kawaramachi and turn left) has prepared some pretty scary Halloween treats, like these fingers and these eyes. Then there's her son, lil' Johnnie, who's not yet even a teeny bit scary but likely aspires to be so. (This is, apparently, his "sexy look".) Shop info can be found at the below link. - William
https://www.facebook.com/outofstepbagels/

Yes, I use katakana in my lessons. It’s really something that gets me kind of bummed out to the max,like you know...But I just don’t have the time to put some phonics into the lesson. I do throw phonics in sometimes but largely it’s throwing a huge curveball at the students. But I also use katakana for the Japanese teacher who is usually afraid to talk and most of the time is gonna sit in the back staring at their watches(hopefully not). And now for the humdinger.... I use katakana to keep a speaking ratio of 60 percent students and 40 percent me. First of all, I made sure that the students understand the meaning of said lesson. Next it’s written up on the wall and put into the mix. The mix is usually a pass game or a standing game or a quiz game to make it a little fun. I will not do such games as Yama-Michi that will turn any English lesson back into a Japanese Lesson. But think about it...Your a part timer ALT now teaching 1st grade elementary to 3rd grade Junior High..And probably doing some Eikaiwa stuff afterwards(Thank you cheap BOEs and Greedy Dispatch Companies)...Time and effort are not quality resources any longer. Throw some katakana in to help you save your voice for one thing...But I also find it gets the students and teachers more involved because it’s familiar. Jay Onyskin

Kumanichi reports on the slow pace of permanent housing being constructed for those displaced in the quakes. Apparently, just 651 of 1,733 planned units spread in an area from Uto to Ozu have been completed.
Blame is being placed partially on the difficulty of obtaining craftsmen, which is understandable, but also on legal issues preventing obtaining land, which is less so.
Kumanichi has a chart of various townships and their targets, their completion rate, and expected date of fulfillment at the link (hint: much of it will come later than the Olympics. Priorities). - William
熊本地震の復興住宅、着工は４割弱　全戸完成は来年度末 | 熊本日日新聞 - This kiji is
県内で最初に完成した西原村の災害公営住宅。県産材１００％の木造平屋１２戸が立ち並ぶ＝６月、同村河原（上杉勇太、小型無人機で撮影）　熊本県内の１２市町村が熊本地震の被災者向けに計画する災害公営住宅（復興...

Some of you may have noticed that quake this morning - it was an M4.1, so no big deal by our standards. What worries me is location - the Uto peninsula, this time to the south, near Matsubase (previous recent quake clusters have been to the north).
Again, if that segment of the fault ruptures, it will have great effects on Kumamoto City. Perhaps the smaller quakes, though, are gradually relieving stress - or they may be foreshocks. - William

Well, Country Gold is next week at Aspecta in Minami Aso on Sunday,October 21st. Starts at 9 am and tickets are 8,000 yen on the day of the show. This festival is in it’s thirtieth year and at first it was drawing first tier acts along with big crowds. The crowds have gotten sparser over the years maybe due to bands that might be considered a second tier band playing or a non-major label band headliner and even a somewhat pricy ticket charge.This year’s headliner is Rounder Records Dailey & Vincent. They sound like a great mix of old school country, gospel and bluegrass. Here is their Wikipedia page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dailey_%26_Vincent . Also here is a video of Charlie Nagatani playing at last year’s festival. https://youtu.be/E5PshCMAHug . Music has alway been a hard business and it’s super duper harder now. Some recommendations would be to make this festival more diverse. Add all kinds of country influenced bands out there like The Mavericks, Calexico, Ryan Adams, X, Rev. Horton Heat,Wanda Jackson with some of the more older almost retiring acts that are looking for one more ride into the sunset. And let’s not forget some good ol’ Japanese bands that can play some killer country and hell...I would throw some Japanese Rockabilly in there too.Jay Onyskin
Dailey & Vincent - Wikipedia
Dailey & Vincent is an American bluegrass music group composed of Jamie Dailey (guitar, bass, vocals), Darrin Vincent (mandolin, guitar, bass, vocals), Aaron McCune (guitar, vocals), Jeff Parker (mandolin, guitar, vocals), Patrick McAvinue (fiddle), Shaun Richardson (guitar, vocals), Bob Mummert (dr...

A few weeks ago I came up with a crazy idea to build my own escape room. Escape rooms are a worldwide phenomenon, originating in Japan, but much more popular overseas. There are a couple in Fukuoka, but none elsewhere in Kyushu.The basic premise is that you are trapped inside a room and have to solve problems and puzzles in order to escape before time runs out. Some rooms come with scary clowns or serial killers; others have themes such as pirates, Sherlock Holmes, bank robberies, schools of magic, Breaking Bad style meth labs...you name it! I've actually been to all of these rooms, and many more.
For my own escape room I was somewhat limited by the only available space being my English school, and a budget of 10,000 yen. I scoured local recycling shops, Daiso and the internet for the props I would need: assorted locks, chests, second-hand books; and then set about creating all the puzzles and the story to link everything together. My students were quite puzzled by the gradual transformation of their classroom, with strange books and mysterious items appearing around the room. On the whole, I think they welcomed the distraction from their studies, especially when they got a chance to have a go at some of the puzzles themselves.
The pop-up room ESCAPE FROM BRITZ opened at the end of September, and has welcomed teams of players keen to test their skills. So far, the fastest team to find all the treasures and complete the game did so in 1 hour and 3 minutes. No-one has managed to do it within the hour...yet! There's a prize for any team managing to make their escape in under 60 minutes.
With Halloween and Christmas round the corner, not to mention writing deadlines for the book I'm currently working on, the game will be dismantled soon, and my classroom returned to its normal state. The final chance to play Kumamoto's only escape room is Sunday October 21st. Teams of up to 6 players, 1000 yen per person, open all day Saturday and Sunday, plus weekday evenings, every day this week. If you know someone who might be interested, please spread the word, or get a team together and take the challenge yourselves.
Thanks for all the interest so far!
Fiona Wall Minami

Hai Mu Dan, the performance group composed of dancer Kim Rihye, percussionist and vocalist Kim Dong-Won, and shakuhachiist Jeff Cairns, played to a standing--room only crowd at B-Plesu tonight. It was the first time I'd seen them, and the beauty of the music and dance, the blending of Korean and Japanese cultures, the shear brilliance left me in tears.
Again, they'll be performing again Sunday night in the square behind Swiss on Kamitori. I strongly recommend viewing their performance. You'll likely leave in tears as well, or breathless. - William

It was a sunny day today here in Kyushu. This led to a surplus of energy production from solar power facilities. One cause of the surplus was the power generated by the Genkai nuclear reactors in Saga.
-- Kirk
Solar power generation suspended in Kyushu- News - NHK WORLD - English
Suppliers of solar electricity in Kyushu, southwest Japan, have suspended power generation to help balance supply and demand.

I've just downloaded my first program from FMC, a local internet radio station that began in 1996. This station is intimately related to two of my hobbies: (1) listening to mp3s of various radio programs and podcasts and (2) gathering information related to Kumamoto to share here on Facebook. Even so, for some strange reason I had never listened to FMC until day. The occasion for my discovery of FMC is an interview with Yuka Ogata about what I've been calling "lozengate" -- the big flap about how her use of a lozenge supposedly defiled the "sacred" ("shinsei" [神聖な]) venue known as the Kumamoto City Council. (I'm not kidding -- such language has actually been used by council members in justifying their draconian punishments of her.)
At any rate, you can hear the interview (in Japanese, of course) at
http://www.fmc.or.jp/sound/qic20181014c.mp3
Personally, I plan to listen to many more FMC programs after this one. (FMC, where have you been all my life?)
-- Kirk
http://www.fmc.or.jp/qic.html
QIC/Quemule Insider Club
熊本発ネットラジオ。毎週日曜日放送。1996年5月26日放送開始。2016年2月21日『放送1000回』達成！！2016年5月に放送20周年。日本発ウェブラジオ「最長寿番組」です。

It's the end of the line for the Aso Ropeway. Constructed in 1958 and carrying some 45,000 visitors a year the 900 meters from a station at the southern entrance to another at the summit, its operator, Kyusan Tourism, decided the damage it sustained in the quakes and the danger it presents to tourists necessitate removal of both stations and its four pylons. Demolition is expected to be completed within the year.
The company is undecided on whether to replace an expensive facility so close to a volcano. On one hand, people today tend to be more physically active than in 1958; on the other, there are more elderly and visitors from other Asian countries. Perhaps it will reappear in a modern form; perhaps we'll be restricted to hiking. Kumanichi has the details at the link. - William
https://this.kiji.is/423676753857447009?c=92619697908483575

Our friend Jeff Cairns, an internationally-known shakuhachi (bamboo flute) player who is a lineage-holder and sensei (teacher) based on Mount Kimpo, reminds us that the Street Art-Plex is underway, with the music portion, dubbed Extravaganza 2018, starting from 5:30 - 9:00 pm TONIGHT at various locations on Kamitori, Shimotori, and centered on Shinshigai. Jeff-san will perform on Sunday at a venue on Kamitori called Hai Mu Dan (the square behind the Swiss confectionery). Info is below. Let's support our local artists! - William
https://scontent.ffuk2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.15752-9/43878689_255649228480459_8816248599353491456_n.jpg?_nc_cat=108&oh=f3c779bfc136838c9c51f767f1c13704&oe=5C405814
http://artplex.jp/

No one I know is happy about the controversy surrounding Ms. Ogata's use of a lozenge in the city council chambers and her colleagues going ballistic in reaction to that usage. The whole flap might not be such a bad thing for Ryukakusan, however, the manufacturer of Ms. Ogata's lozenge of choice. It became a matter of public record that Ms. Ogata had a Ryukakusan lozenge in her mouth -- not a generic one -- because she answered with the brand name when the chair person asked about what she had in her mouth. In response, Ryukakusan posted various videos on their Twitter feed (https://twitter.com/ryukakusan_pr) that advertise products they are promoting as suitable for public speaking.
This, in turn, has been picked up by Mainichi Newspaper (Japanese version):
https://mainichi.jp/articles/20181010/k00/00m/040/016000c
The article on the connections between current events and Ryukakusan's marketing indicates that the commercial had been made before the conflict in Kumamoto occurred but that they reposted it because it seemed to fit the occasion quite well.
-- Kirk

Many don't know that the 熊 of 熊本 was originally 隈, which might be translated as "hinterland." Kato Kiyomasa felt slighted by the nuance so switched the kanji to a homonymous but much cooler one. Flash forward 400 years, and we've got Kumamon, but the 隈 remains.
But not for much longer. A central-Kyushu expressway had long been envisioned. Kumanichi reports that the first half is on the verge of completion and is slated to open within the year. It will connect the Kashima junction with Yamato Machi (still called Yabe by old folks like me). That's halfway over the hump to Oita and a stone's-throw from Takachiho.
Kumamoto has come a long way from relying on the rivers for transportation. Here's hope this will aid in economic revitalization of the 隈. - William
九州中央道、工事着々と　嘉島ー山都町間、年度内開通へ | 熊本日日新聞 - This kiji is
舗装工事やガードレールの設置などが進む北中島ＩＣ＝１１日、山都町　国土交通省熊本河川国道事務所は１１日、九州中央自動車道の小池高山インターチェンジ（ＩＣ、御船町）─北中島ＩＣ（山都町）で工事が進む約１...